Twentieth Anniversary Season

photo: Brian Padgett

The Demetrius Klein Dance Company is celebrating its Twentieth Anniversary this season! Each weekend of Klein Dance Studio’s annual Fall Festival (Oct. 11-Nov. 9) audiences can anticipate a unique experience. South Florida’s premiere modern dance company will showcase its most defining works from the past as well as current favorites and a world premiere. Come celebrate the joy of movement with us! Click on ‘current season’ for details.

Benefit Performance and Silent Auction

Please join us in a common cause…

Benefit Performance and Silent Auction

featuring the Demetrius Klein Dance Company and DKDC II

June 8, 2008

Time: 6-9 p.m

811 Lake Avenue, Lake Worth

Klein Dance is holding a performance, silent auction, and reception in order to raise funds to give our studio and performance spaces a much needed facelift. The evening will begin with a reception and silent auction of framed vintage dance posters and photographs from the Kenn Fay collection followed by performances by the Demetrius Klein Dance Company and DKDC II. Afterward enjoy dessert with the dance company and a drawing for a framed poster. Suggested donation per person $50. Larger or smaller donations are gratefully accepted.

For over 20 years Klein Dance has served South Florida by making the art of dance accessible for all who wish to be a part of it. We need to raise $10,000 to pay for our current renovation project. Your support will give us a more inviting space in which to share the joy of dance. Klein Dance is a 501c3 non-profit institution. Your donation is tax deductible. Make checks payable to Klein Dance. Credit Cards accepted.

Work has already begun on the first phase of planned renovations. The exterior of the building and the front and rear lobbies have been painted. A front door has been repaired, and new lighting has been installed. New flooring is planned for the front and rear lobbies. Phase II includes painting the studios and remaining interior spaces, replacing carpets, and converting underused space into a conditioning room/movement center. Your support makes it possible.

Reserve Your Seat Now!

$50 per person (includes benefit and drawing)
$100 per person (includes benefit, drawing, a pair of tickets to a Klein Dance Fall Festival performance,
and listing in DKDC programs)
$150 per person (includes benefit, drawing, a pair of tickets to the Fall Festival, program listing,
and an invitation to the DKDC 20th Anniversary party)

RSVP: 561-586-1889 Email Kathleen Klein: kathleen_klein@pba.edu

Final Installment of Urban/Land/Scapes

The Demetrius Klein Dance Company is proud to present this season’s final installment of Urban/Land/Scapes. In keeping with the project’s goal of taking dance to unexpected locations, Klein’s Urban/Land/Scapes will be performed in the city of Pahokee, Palm Beach County’s ”other” coast, located on the shore of Lake Okeechobee. Along with innovative dance, the audience will enjoy live music composed by Kyle Conklin and Nicholas Klein, video projections by John Watts and visual installations by Lucy Keshavarz. The Pahokee performance will take place Saturday, May 31 at 8:00 pm on the Old High School Lawn at the Parks and Recreation Facility which is located at 360 East Main Street. Admission is free. Bring your own blanket or lawn chair. Call 310-0789 for more information or directions. For more information about the company and school visit www.kleindance.org.

Bad News/ Good News from DKDC

BAD NEWS: Due to circumstances outside our control, the Demetrius Klein Dance Company performance of Urban/Land/Scapes that was scheduled this for this Saturday at the Riviera Beach Marina has been canceled.

GOOD NEWS:  The show has been rescheduled for the following weekend. A new installation of Demetrius Klein Dance Company’s Urban/Land/Scapes, this time with a nautical flair, will take place on Sunday, May 25, at 6:00 pm. It will still take place at the Picnic Pavilion of Bicentennial Park at the Riviera Beach Marina and will include live music, visual installations and, of course, a site-specific performance by Klein’s critically acclaimed dancers.  Bring your own blanket or lawn chair, and come experience Urban/Land/Scapes along with the Marina’s refreshing breezes and views of the Intracoastal Waterway. What better way to celebrate the beginning of summer!

Urban/Land/Scapes v1.3

The Demetrius Klein Dance Company, proud receivers of Palm Beach Cultural Council’s Category A Grant, are excited to present the first May installment of Urban/Land/Scapes. Hosted by Palm Beach Community College’s Duncan Theatre, the site-specific, multi-media work will include spoken-word texts presented by a chorus of Palm Beach Community College students. Live music composed and performed by Kyle Conklin and Nicholas Klein and video projections by John Watts will accompany the work. The performance will take place outdoors at the Lake Worth PBCC Campus between the Theatre and Humanities Buildings on Saturday, May 3 at 8:00 pm. Bring your own blanket or lawn chair to best enjoy the show. For more information call 310-0789.

We had a super turn out the Keshavarz & Associates performance last Saturday. Thanks everybody for coming out! There are great video clips from both installments of Urban/Land/Scapes on the “recent video” tab at the top of this page.

Urban/Land/Scapes

Saturday, February 9 at 9am & 11am
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahachee Wild Life Refuge
10216 Lee Road, Boynton Beach
Arrive early to be escorted to performance location
Visit www.fws.gov/loxahatchee or call 407-732-3684 for directions

Saturday, March 15 at 8pm
Old School Square Gymnasium
located adjacent to the Crest Theatre building
Visit www.oldschool.org or call 561-243-7922 for directions

Saturday, April 26 at 8pm
Keshavarz & Associates located at 711 N. Dixie Highway between buildings

Saturday, May 3 at 8pm
Palm Beach Community College, Lake Worth Campus
between the Theatre and Humanities buildings

Saturday, May 17 at 8pm
Riviera Beach Marina at the picnic pavilion

Saturday, May 31
Pahokee
TBA

For further information about all venues please call 561-310-0789.
Download the poster - Urban/Land/Scapes

Backstage with the Modern Dancers

Backstage with the modern dancers
She was stretching her arms,
Configuring her body.
While they were breathing, they were shouting.
She was concentrating on her breathing
And didn’t seem to mind,

As I sat there on the couch,
And tuned my guitar,
And played a few chords
Like roses growing their thorns.
Getting ready to perform
With bare feet and painted faces,
They took their places,
On shivering legs beneath colourful gowns.

And out there on the wooden floors,
The sweat from their pores.
I’m writing a list
Of songs I can sing by myself.
Backstage with the modern dancers,
Who feel it, like I do.
Like I feel it, like I feel it.
Backstage with the modern dancers,
Getting ready to go on,
She showed me her spin,
With a beauty lit from within.

And all of these things,
I don’t think they should be released

- Great Lake Swimmers

Open Movement / Dance Jams

A new year is a perfect time for new beginnings. Come be a part of something new in 2008 that is creative, fun and good for you! This year Klein Dance Studio will be hosting a series of Open Movement / Dance Jams.

The first jam will be Friday, January 18 from 8 to 10 pm. For those who would like some extra inspiration, an Introduction to Movement Improvisation class will be offered at 7:30 pm.

All are welcome! No previous dance experience is needed. Just wear clothes that are easy to move in and comfortable. Bare feet or socks are best. Suggested donation for the evening is $5-$10. Klein Dance Studio is located at 811 Lake Avenue in downtown Lake Worth. For more information call 586-1889, or visit www.kleindance.org.

Art Show to Benefit Klein Dance

Selected works by the award-winning artist Vicki Henderson will be on exhibit and available for purchase at an upcoming art show in downtown Lake Worth.

The public is invited to the event at the Klein Dance Studio at 811 Lake Avenue on Saturday, December 8 between 2:30 and 7:30 pm. A portion of all sales will be donated to Klein Dance, home of the critically acclaimed Demetrius Klein Dance Company.

Henderson’s recent paintings are colorful, joyful expressions of a deep love of nature. A palpable flow of energy and a tropical exuberance permeate each piece. Her works lift the spirit and celebrate life.

For more information: info @ kleindancecompany.org
www.kleindance.org

Ms. Henderson’s bio:
Vicki Henderson studied in London at John Cass College of Art, in Paris at the École des Beaux Arts and in Vermont at Middlebury College where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Fine Art and French.

She completed her Master of Fine Arts degree at Pratt Institute in New York City, winning a Ford Foundation Tuition Grant. She also holds a watercolor degree from the National Academy in Manhattan.

Henderson has been awarded several prizes for her paintings. She has exhibited in New York City, across the U.S. and in London, England. Presently she resides in Lake Worth.

Kleins’ dance after stroke risky, satisfying

By SHARON McDANIEL Palm Beach Post Dance Writer

Monday, October 29, 2007

He supported her; she steered him. They were the portrait of togetherness.  Even when they moved in opposition, such as mirror image, they merely redefined an aspect of oneness.Personal rapport, deep affection, mutual respect - all those nifty qualities we call love - spoke clearly through their movements. It wasn’t just modern dance; it was art imitating life.On Saturday night, husband and wife Demetrius and Kathleen Klein performed together for the first time since her stroke two years ago. Klein Dance Inc. was filled to capacity with not just a dance audience, but a crowd of well-wishers.

We observed more than dance; we witnessed a heart-warming wedding anniversary - or better, a renewal of vows. As much spiritual as physical, the renewal took on various forms: Kathleen’s returning strength and improved mobility leading to this stage comeback and her lead in the new work, Light in the House, choreographed by Demetrius for the occasion.

It was a risky but highly satisfying way to end the performance portion of the 19th Klein Dance Company Fall Festival.